Put him outta my Misery
by Liviania
Summary: AU-Jounouchi is plagued by bizarre theories, a strange girl, and oh yeah: the little thing known as his death. Or his life after death.
1. Prolouge

Authoress Notes: This story is being redone. Read all of it, as some of the changes are subtle ones. But DO NOT read on unless it has a note like this at the top-it means that chapter hasn't been rewritten yet. This prologue is all-new, except for parts of part trois. I hope you enjoy this longer and more coherent version of Put him outta my Misery.

**Warning**: This story contains an OC. My main reason being, I feel it better to write my own character and show her assimilation into the character's world instead of writing a canon character out of canon.

**Second warning**: This is AU. I utilize the existing universe in different ways than the manga or anime. This is fanfiction and there is no pretension of anything else.

Please note, I don't particularly use English dub or the original names. I mix and match to suit my own aesthetic sensibilities. Anytime I feel you might be confused, I'll mark it and add an explanation.

**Third warning**: Joey's narration in this prologue is done seriously. Yes, I know it isn't his usual demeanor-but he has a reason to be that way.

Feel free to ask questions in reviews-more than likely I'll address it in the next chapter and write a personal e-mail if given an address.

Disclaimer: No, I don't own YGO. No, I am not getting paid for this. No, this disclaimer is not the same as my old one. I'm so nice I'm even giving you a new one of these evil things.

Put him outta my Misery

by Livi {ania}

Prologue

-part un-

(out of time)

The Millennium Items (or Sennen Items, if you prefer) are rather frankly, mysterious. It is an inherent trait with them. They're inanimate with only their spirits to speak for them, and frankly…they're spirits tend to have amnesia or be completely out of their minds. There is no one to speak of their past, their conception, their anything. It isn't exactly a winning combination for everyday familiarity. Thus, the general mysteriousness.

In recent times, the seven born of the massacre of Kuru Eruna have become better known, but one shouldn't assume those are the only ones out there. Remember the fact no one knows basically anything about them? Except maybe the keeper of the Ankh and Scales, and he knows how to keep a secret. They weren't the first to be made, or the last, although they certainly were the pinnacle of their art. The pharaoh's priests had outdone themselves. Now, they can get a nice little pat on the back before all those vengeful spirits smack 'em.

Of course, each batch has their own characteristics (so on and so forth), their own legends, their own special background. Each as mysterious as the last.

These mysterious bits of magick imbued gold were about to touch two lives, one previously touched and one clean of involvement. Both of those lives thoroughly hating mystery.

-part deux-

(2003)

It was a nice, normal day, when a young gaijin[1] girl opened a gift from her pen-pal and put the strange golden anklet inside on. A few seconds later, she was shocked when no matter how hard she tried she couldn't remove it. "Wha-?" She exclaimed, quickly reading the accompanying letter.

_Ayashi-kun,[2]_

_This happened to come into my possession, but it doesn't belong to me. It may not belong to you either, but I have a feeling it does. Please be careful and good luck in all your endeavors._

_Ishtar Isis_

She stared morosely at the piece of jewelry hanging delicately around her leg. "I don't even like gold," her voice came out mournfully. Somehow she didn't feel happy with this…thing…touching her skin. She suddenly doubled up in pain, and felt stronger flashes. A few impressions later, she slumped over, blonde hair spilling everywhere.

And the anklet searched for its spirit, using its host's own life to do so.

-part trois-

(two years earlier)

The day didn't start out so bad, just so you know. The weather was nice, I didn't get into any fights, and I ran into Mai. The highlight of those three being I ran into Mai. I'm actually kind of disappointed about the whole no fights thing. It was actually rather premature of me. But now I happen to be getting ahead of myself. It's still better than babbling on about stuff I'm sure no one besides me cares about.

But then things just went…wrong, if you allow me to be cliché. Actually, everything bit the orangutans in the big one (If ya get my drift).[3]

My dad's a deadbeat, a bum, a hobo, whatever term floats yer boat. He's also a drunk most of the time. Every once in awhile he gets a DUI and goes to AA meetings, but he always seems to fall of the wagon. He's also a bit of a mean drunk. If you take the 'a bit' part of that sentence in a sarcastic sort of way. His fuse got short, and I always seemed to hold the match. A truly useless talent. Well, it did serve one use. Not one I much enjoyed though.

I can't remember everything. I think I suffered some brain damage that carried through afterwards. I just have faint flashes of memory, incomplete and incoherent.

Fists and feet. Kicking, biting, blood filling my mouth; copper and salt and gagging it all down.

That voice in my head telling me to fight back. My body sluggish, not responding.

SLAM!

What was that, a chair? Has he been watching wrestling?

Fists striking, hitting, something falling on me and retaliating.

Grunting and moaning and anger and hate and confusion and-

Crap it.

Slump, fall, bleed, can't think can't think can't think can't

pain pain pain pain pain pain pain pain pain pain pain

Nothing.

End. At least, for now.

"Hey, Joey?"

END PROLOGUE

[1] A gaijin is a foreigner.

[2] The –kun suffix is polite, but more familiar than –san. Used for friends (mostly younger than oneself). Ayashi is my original character's last name, not first. Ayashi-kun would be used to address her by a casual friend.

[3]A friend came up with the original phrase 'that bites the monkeys.' (That sucks.) Variations have been created upon that, and 'biting the orangutans in the big one' is a very rude phrase among our circle.


	2. Transitions

Authoress Notes: Here is the brand new chapter one, Transitions. Unlike my previous attempt, I've decided to include a small bit of the events between 2001 (the year of Jou's death) and 2004 (the year the main part of my story takes place). This won't really affect anything that was already written, but I think the plot will be much better for it.

**Warning**: This chapter contains an OC, shonen ai mentions, and scenes of violence/abuse.

Disclaimer: YGO is not my property. This particular plot and Ayashi-kun (whose full name is revealed in this chapter) do belong to me though, and I would like to be asked before anyone takes them. I am not receiving payment for this, unless you count the happiness reviews give me.

Put him outta my Misery

by Livi {ania}

_Transitions_

"You cannot change who people were without changing who they are." –the Butterfly Effect

**[Ripples of Jou]**

(2001-present day)

-bad things happen-

One of your best friends dies, senselessly, and you're left with only questions. Wondering why this happened to someone 'good', or why you didn't see the signs earlier.

You don't always think about how he would've hated if you knew his pain. He might've minded death, but the pain was just a part of him. A part of his father. He never once imagined life without and he never once regretted life with it. It just was.

No matter what side of the coin you view, your best friend **is** gone.

-and there is nothing you can do-

No matter what happens next, the facts of life don't change. And one of those facts is death.

You have to face it. If you don't, it will drive you crazy. You can't stop just because someone else did.

You can't jump off the bridge for them. Everyone's path **is** their own.

-except move on-__

Life goes on and its current has a mighty undertow. You either keep moving or get pulled under.

Joey-taachi[1], in the end, moved on.

Anzu and Ryou both depressed at first, but slowly warming back up to life. Anzu, who was given a scholarship to ballet school—not in New York as she planned, but to the renowned Joffery Ballet. Moving away from friends, she moved away from grief, and lost herself in dance and passion. She's now an American, in all senses of the word. And Ryou had his yami to help him, guide him out of his grief. After all, what fun is angsty hikari? Bakura had more lively taste.

Tristan Hiroto[2], his closest buddy, had been shocked by Joey's untimely death. He'd certainly seen bruises on his homie[3] before, but he'd also seen the fights Jou got into regularly. After, he figured maybe the fights were a way of hiding the evidence. Hiroto never really knew.

He spent a year, empty and depressed, losing interest in his previous crush Serenity. She was so much like her brother, when it came down to it. Lost in memories of his buddy, his parents moved so he could have a change of scene, forever breaking ties with the gang.

Serenity Kawai[4] went with her mother back to America, scarred by the brief time she had with her brother before her left forever. She didn't return to Japan for two years, where the grief of nostalgia nearly destroyed her when she did return. Her comfort was found with a perceptive soul, one with ties to her past and a hope for the future.

Kaiba Mokuba gave Serenity his love, as his brother had given to Kujaku Mai. He felt scared with her, wondering what it would be like to lose Seto, but also incredibly happy. Both of them had the power to fill the holes in each others' souls.

Yugi separated himself in gaming and his yami, but couldn't stayed sad long. The light always finds ways to shine, even in deepest darkness. Only one side can be dark, and the balance is self-preserving. [5]

**[Stagnation of Kat]**

(2003-present day)

She lost herself in the world, falling into dreams and shadows. Mind forever searching, body comatose and devoid.

Friends giving up hope, never visiting anymore.

Family encouraging parents to pull the plug.

Mother and Father, desperate, pulling the plug.

With no results.

Even without life support, Ayashi churned on.

They bought a separate residence for her to live with a private nurse, and moved her in.

It was on that day Ayashi Neko woke.

"Isis-?" She asked, voice croaking from long disuse.

The nurse smiled enigmatically, and rubbed the younger girl's forehead reassuringly. "Shh, don't strain your voice. Questions will answer themselves in their own time."

END TRANSITIONS

[1]-taachi is a plural suffix. Joey-taachi is basically Joey and others. I kind of used it to refer to as 'Joey's friends'.

[2]I like Hiroto as a first name, but can't take Honda. It makes me think of my sister's car. I think Tristan Hiroto sounds better than Traylor Hiroto, and he isn't going to be mentioned much anyway.

[3]I can see them calling each other 'homie'.

[4]Kawai Shizuka is the Japanese name, but I utterly adore the name Serenity. Due to her living arrangements, I think the American way of ordering personal and family names fits better.

[5]Notice lack of mentions? Mai and Kaiba will get more later, and Otogi wasn't exactly close to Jou. Malik/Marik have never met him…the Ishtar's only connection is Isis knows Ayashi. That's my basic reasoning.


	3. Chapter One: Moving On

Authoress Notes: I just realized I didn't explain something last chapter—Serenity was in Japan. Yes, when her brother died she went there to kind of make peace with herself, and it didn't work that well. At the actual time Joey was killed she was in America. This Chapter One was going to combine the first few old chapters. But then everything kept expanding…

**Warning:** This chapter contains an OC and mentions of child abuse. Not to mention Joey's deviant religion.

Disclaimer: Guess what? I bought YGO today for about a billion dollars, you gullible fool. I own very little—a plot, Ayashi-kun, Ayashi-kun's clothes, and little things. Most (all) of the furniture belongs to friends.

Put him outta my Misery

By Livi ania

Chapter One

_Moving On_

"It's a guitar made of the blood of fornicators and the sinews of thieves and gluttons. It-It's a Fender."-Will Ferrell, SNL

**Sweet Dreams are Made of These 1**

(Early 2004)

Ayashi sat on a comfy, green fuzzy contraption passing itself off as a chair, her legs too shaky to hold her. She sucked in air as fast as she could, as if she was about to suffocate.

"Why is it so hard to walk across the room?" she asked quietly. She understood not being able to walk long distances…but the apartment her parents had afforded for her was a tiny hovel. Five feet did not a decent walk make; yet she felt like a marathon participant.

"You've been in a coma for the better part of a year," her 'nurse' told her gently. "Almost all muscle definition is gone, and not just in your legs. Your lungs too aren't used to powering a moving body. If you'd been in a hospital you're rehabilitation would be easier, but your parents are cheapskates." Most people Ayashi had only known by sight for a week would have been boxed for that, but she had known the other woman far longer than that. Besides, she wasn't in much condition for violence.

"So, how much of this did you know was going to happen, Isis-san? You obviously had time to get nurse's credentials, which I'm fairly sure takes more than a year. Also, you took the trouble to come from Egypt to find me."

"I was already studying to be a doctor," Isis told the girl softly, "but I easily transferred to nurse. I've told you how…demanding…my father was and I'd joined the program in an effort to get out of his realm of influence. Basically, the government pays for your tuition and training, but you're indebted to work for them for a certain number of years. 2 Since I ended up not becoming a doctor, I got out of the deal fairly easily. I had to pay some money, but by then my father was dead and I had quite a bit of an inheritance." Isis stood and paced, her long black hair swinging behind her.

"Ayashi-kun…I truly didn't realize what was going to happen to you. I have a similar artifact of my own, which doesn't tax my body much at all. I didn't even have an inkling of what might happen, until I saw what happened to my brother." 3 She took in a breath, "I'm not sorry though. What is meant to be is meant to be, and besides, there is one other person involved, and they may actually benefit from this arrangement—whoever they are."

The young blonde fingered her pink halter in a tentative movement, a reassuring gesture. Opening her mouth, she was abruptly cut off.

"No. You know more than enough for now. The future strikes a delicate balance as it approaches the now."

**Some of the Want to be Used by You**

(Later that year)

Ayashi woke from a noise in the middle of the night, "Isis?" she called slightly. The woman was no longer her nurse, technically speaking, but her roommate. She'd told Ayashi she was going to be gone for a week for family problems. Actually, she'd said it in a voice not even a mother could trust.

Not hearing an answer, she turned toward the door slowly, pulling her pajama shorts to cover as much of her butt as possible. Slipping out of the covers, she padded to where she thought she had heard the noise, and whispered, "Who are you?" She'd meant to sound slightly threatening, but she sounded like what she was—a scared, alone, teenage girl.

As the boy turned, she wished she had thought to grab some form of weapon. Not only was he big, in her apartment in the middle of the night, but he was staring at the front of her bright yellow 'Sun & Surf' tank top. 4

"Who am I?" He repeated her words, his own voice sounding lost. "Who are you? Where is this? What is this?"

"Where is this?! This is my apartment! In the middle of the night! Stop looking down my shirt, pervert!" She yelled at him, growing hysterical. What a way to continue one of the worst years in the history of man. Shifting her weight, she felt a glimmer of warmth from the gold around her ankle.

_'The anklet has powers,' __Isis__ told her, looking into her eyes. 'I don't know when they'll manifest, but they will. Be careful how you use them. Shadow magic comes at a price.'_

_'Shadow magic?'_

_'The magic all types of the items use. Powered by death, hatred, blood…yet for some reason, it is always the pure types who possess them. They access the magic through,'_

_Here __Isis__ cut off, ignoring Ayashi's protest. 'You don't need to know.'_

"I'm Ayashi. Ayashi Neko," she told him softly, fixing in on that sensation of warmth, letting it fill her mind. Looking at him, her blue eyes unfocused and she fell straight forward, landing on his chest.

Although that phrase doesn't accurately describe it…the instant their skin touched, both of them appeared to melt together, until only Ayashi's unconscious form was left in the kitchen.

**Some of Them Want to Abuse You.**

**Some of Them Want to Be Abused.**

"Where is this?" Both of them marveled, same words, different rooms.

A dark, gloomy sort of space surrounded Joey. "O Great Cheeseburger…deliver me." 5 He peered around, waiting for his night vision to kick in. Gradually, he made out a largish bed with a nightstand to its side, upon which sat the only recognizable personal effect. A picture taken awhile ago of him and Serenity hugging—of course, the photo as he knew it previously didn't have Mai, Yugi, and that jerk Kaiba in the background.

Ayashi peered nervously around at the blue walls around her. The room was blurred, like looking through a soft focus, but she no longer liked going out of her apartment. Physically weakened, emotionally unloved, mentally traumatized…factors just didn't conspire to make her outgoing and adventuresome. "Please, someone else, please?" She begged softly to the walls, not noticing another important development—her summery pajamas had been replaced with jeans and a shiny blue blouse.

For a brief moment, her head felt spinny. Then, she was standing in the same room, but that intruder was standing there too, holding her up.

"Um…Nice to meet you, Ayashi-san. I'm Jounouchi Katsuya. Tell me tonight isn't going to get any freakier? I almost wish the old man was beating up on me.

**Everybody's Looking for Something.**

END FIRST CHAPTER

Let's see…I'm moving the plot far faster than last time, but I had thought this chapter would cover more. Little glossy things I just thought to add turned really long. Like all that Isis/Ayashi interaction? It started out as a sentence.

1 Lyrics are from the lovely song 'Sweet Dreams', originally by the Eurythemics, redone by Marilyn Manson. Both are terrific.

2 I took this from an actual program thing in the US, but skewed it a whole ton to suit my purposes. Northern Exposure anyone?

3 So, I mentioned Malik…how many of you want to see more of him?

4 There is no Jou/Ayashi. But I see Jou as the type to look when he sees a girl bra-less.

5 I didn't invent the Great Cheeseburger. Currently, I can't remember who did—but they get credit THE INSTANT I find it. So basically it should be next chapter.


	4. Chapter Two: Waking Up

Authoress Notes: Oh, the band last chapter was Eurythmics. My bad. I still haven't found the Great Cheeseburger source; although I'm almost 100 sure it was Treana. Now, I think I'll leave trippy Kat and Jou for awhile and focus on the Sennen Item users: Isis, Shadii, Yugi, Malik, and Ryou (in no particular order).

**Warning**: This chapter contains an OC, shonen ai mentions, hentai and squabbling siblings.

Disclaimer: No, I do not happen to have acquired ownership to YGO since the last chapter. If you own YGO and or looking to sell, I am interested.

Put him outta my Misery

by Livi ania

_Waking Up_

Chapter Two

"African ho-hos and African Twinkies…"-Yuki, _the Wallflower_

_Meanwhile…_

**Not Enough Money in the WORLD.**

"Icy?" a cute, innocent voice drifted up the stairwell to her private room in her family apartments. "Please? It's just Disneyland…I mean, what could go wrong? They're very family friendly."

"Why is it so important to you that I sign your slip AND chaperone? I thought teenage boys weren't supposed to be able to wait to get rid of their guardians?"

"Well…the school didn't want to be liable for me. So I can only go on the trip if you go to and watch over me."

"It's your own fault for being a criminal genius," Isis told him, sweeping down the stairs and going past him. She figured it was about time to head to one of her other apartments.

"But I'm not a criminal genius," Malik whined piteously as she walked out the door. "That's my yami. AND EVERYONE ELSE GETS TO GO!" He yelled after her quickly retreating back.

"Please, please jump off a bridge," Isis moaned to herself. "Come on, be a lemming!"1

**Begging for Change.**

"Did she say yes?" Ryou calmly asked Malik over the phone, even as Bakura draped all over him.

"She said no," Malik's voice came through crackly, the dejection still clear in his tone.

"I figured." Bakura snorted, rudely snatching the phone. "I hadn't noticed the floor growing cold as if something below it had frozen."

"The water pipes?"

"Yeah, yeah that's…or hell." 2 Bakura rolled his eyes at the blonde and handed the phone back to Ryou. "Tell me when you're done with the whiny Egyptian."

**Get Your Hands Off My Stack.**

Shadii opened the door to a smiling Isis leaning on the side entrance wall. "So many plans to make to save the world…" she trailed off, and drew a finger down his arm. "I think I need to unwind."

"I think you do," Shadii replied, leaning forward into her. "Come on in," he whispered into her ear, feeling her smile against his face.

"Sounds like a plan to me."

**Pygmy Bank.**

Yugi worked the cash register steadily, when Mai walked through the door, looking much as she had three years ago to his eyes. "Kujaku-san!" he exclaimed, his innocent grin fully in place. "I haven't seen you since…" he trailed off, a lost look entering his large purple eyes. He finished his sentence softly, with a sentence of itself, "Jou died."

Mai stopped dead, fully realizing why she had never gone back to the Game Shop. She'd gotten over Jou, but only as much as you can ever get rid of the first person you truly love. And she could see Yugi still well remembered his best friend.

"How could he never tell us?" Yugi asked her softly. "How could he keep something like that a secret?"

"I don't know those answers," Mai told him harshly, her face narrowing. "So don't ask me." Turning on the heel of her boot, the young woman walked to the limo where Seto was waiting for her. "You were right," she informed the blue-eyed boy as she got in gracefully, "This was wrong."

It wasn't long before both Yugi and Mai were crying, and Yami and Seto were helpless to dry their tears.

END SECOND CHAPTER

This was shorter, but it holds the cliffhanger longer and gives you a glimpse of the other characters, including Mai and Seto.

Get your hands off my stack is a lyric from a Pink Floyd song, and piggy banks were made of pygmy clay.

1 Lemmings are creatures that follow each other. As the myth goes, they follow each other off cliffs.

2 Quote between two of my friends, although they were talking about school cafeteria food.


	5. Chapter Three: Chill Down

Authoress Notes: Back to Joey and Kat, but hopefully I'll also get to Mai and Seto, and maybe even get the two pairs to meet.

**Warning:** Car-crash.

Disclaimer: Ayashi the freaked out is my own invention, but everything else belongs to another, far more brilliant personage.

Put Him outta my Misery

by Livi ania

Chapter Three

_Cool Down_

"But some people, you know, are just bad kissers…"-Jack, _Jack & Bobby_

**Suspicious Soul Room**

Actually, on second thought, I ain't ever enjoyed the old man beatin' up on me."

Ayashi stared up fearfully, and carefully walked backwards, tripping over a pile of material, cloth and pillows, azul claro to indigo, jersey cotton to crushed velvet. "Whoa! What? Um…this is really comfortable," she finished, relaxing into the sheets. Letting her mind go, she was quickly asleep.

_Hunh__ What happened to my survival instinct?_

_/Nothing to worry about here. Your own soul can't hurt you. Only guard you. And you, m'dear, need rest. He'll protect you./_

_Who?_

_/Right here./ Ayashi's dream self felt the familiar gold glow around her ankle._

**Triumph Apart-ment**

Jounouchi stared, startled once again. He was back in the unfamiliar apartment. "I'm getting tired of this weirdness. And," he broke off, blue eyes wide. One hand reached up to grasp a long golden strand in those eyes. The voice that had come out of him had not been his. He looked down, and 110 lbs of American-Japanese hit the floor.

Groggily getting up, he ran for Ayashi's room quickly. "Clothes! OH MY GOD I need clothes NOW!!!" Grabbing the first articles he came across (a red sports bra, an low-cut black top, purple camouflage cargos, a hand-knit red hat from the Andes Mountains, and silver stilettos) he dressed as fast as he could without looking at herself.1 And it was thus dressed he practically flew out the door, down the stairs, and into the street, ignoring a couple of catcalls.

And it was thus dressed, Jounouchi-Ayashi stepped out in front of Kaiba Seto's limo.

**Love's Mansion**

Jounouchi groggily came to, and he immediately tried to sit up. He didn't reckon on Ayashi's weak body and the injuries from the wreck.

He screamed, a raw sound, fueled by the fear of another new place in addition to the pain.

Seeing a moving shape in the corned of his eyes, he muttered softly, "Please?" Or it would've been a mutter in his voice. In Ayashi's, it was a husky plead.

"Are you okay?" the shape asked, moving nearer, causing her heart to stop dead.

"MAI?"

Pulled out of his reverie by the shout, Seto stood and walked over to the strangely dressed girl. "You know her?" He asked his girlfriend, arching one brow.

"Never met her. Certainly not with that outfit." Mai told him, looking her over. "What's your name, hon?"

"Jou-," he started, "I mean…" _What was her name? What was her name?_ "…Ayashi. What are you doing with Seto, Mai? Don't you have more taste than, than THAT?"

Mai and Seto stared. Their day was starting to get weird.

Jou figured it was impossible for his to get any weirder.

END THIRD CHAPTER

1 Gender bending. Try it sometime.


End file.
